Tyler Thornburg

Similar to his 2013 campaign, Thornburg saw more success in the majors than in the minors. With the Brewers, he acted as a long reliever, posting a decent 3.67 ERA and 1.25 WHIP. With Triple-A Color...

Thornburg (3-4) faced just one batter in the bottom of the ninth, allowing a leadoff triple to Pirates second baseman Josh Harrison, and watched teammate Scooter Gennett overthrow third base to plate Harrison for the winning run.

Thornburg was well on his way to a nice season out of the Brewers’ bullpen before seeing his campaign cut short due to an elbow injury. He was fortunate to avoid Tommy John surgery, but did not pitch after June 6. Presumably healthy for 2015, he will likely open in a middle-to-long relief role out of the Brewers’ bullpen. His ratios were not pretty, but he averaged nearly a strikeout per inning, and owned a 2.83 ERA prior to his final outing of 2014, so he could be a key cog in the relief corps at some point in 2015.

2014

It’s rare that a player struggles at Triple-A but dominates in the majors, but that’s exactly what Thornburg did in 2013. Thornburg allowed a lot of runners to reach base and did not win a game in 15 starts with Triple-A Nashville, but he shined in Milwaukee, posting a 3.04 ERA in 11 relief appearances, and an even more impressive 1.47 ERA in seven starts. Thornburg doesn’t have dominant stuff, but he throws three pitches and gets the ball over the plate. His big league performance essentially negated his rough 2013 Triple-A season, but the Brewers' addition of Matt Garza via free agency means he will likely open the 2014 campaign with Nashville. However, he will likely be among the top options should the Brewers need to bring up a starter.

2013

Thornburg continued to shoot through the Brewers' ranks last season, appearing in games at every level from Double-A through the bigs. As a starter in the minors, he posted a 10-4 record, 3.20 ERA, and 113:37 K:BB in 112.2 innings; and while he fell victim to the long ball with Milwaukee, he at least got his feet wet in the majors. Thornburg figures to open the 2013 campaign in the minors, but he could be one of the top options should the big club need to add a starter. If the Brewers decide his secondary pitches are not good enough to cut it as a starter in the big leagues, he should at least develop into a useful late-inning option in the bullpen.

2012

Thornburg was bumped up to High-A Brevard County and pitched well with a 10.03 K/9IP in 68 innings as a starter. The 4.37 BB/9IP is disconcerting and may cause him to be moved into a relief role, but the Brewers will continue to use him as a starter in the minors. He could get bumped up to Double-A in 2012 with an eye towards contributing at the major league level in 2013.